OAN Staff Blake Wolf
2:35 PM – Monday, November 3, 2025
FBI Director Kash Patel has responded to criticism over his use of a government jet to attend his girlfriend’s country music performance in Pennsylvania.
Meanwhile, the FBI has also since told Steven Palmer, an FBI official of 27 years, to “immediately resign or be fired” after Patel was frustrated over reporting on his publicly available jet logs, which suggested that he utilized one of the bureau’s planes to watch his girlfriend perform last week, according to a Bloomberg Law report — citing “three people familiar with the situation.”
Palmer was the head of the FBI’s critical incident response group, which is responsible for handling major security threats and managing the bureau’s fleet of jets. Patel’s flight schedule was traceable through online tracking services.
On Sunday, Patel addressed the controversy in an X post, announcing: “I am proud of the work of this FBI. We’re taking violent criminals off the street in record numbers, crushing the fentanyl crisis, dismantling cartels, saving children, hunting down terrorists — and so much more.”
“Let me be clear: we will not be distracted by baseless rumors or the noise from uninformed internet anarchists and the fake news. I’ve always said — criticize me all you want. But going after the people doing great work, my personal life, or those around me is a total disgrace,” Patel wrote.
Advertisement“The disgustingly baseless attacks against Alexis — a true patriot and the woman I’m proud to call my partner in life — are beyond pathetic. She is a rock-solid conservative and a country music sensation who has done more for this nation than most will in ten lifetimes. I’m so blessed she’s in my life.”
“Attacking her isn’t just wrong — it’s cowardly and jeopardizes our safety. My love of family will always be my cornerstone, and you will never tear that down or keep me from them,” he continued. “I and this FBI will stay laser-focused on our mission and continue the reform we promised — rebuilding this Bureau from the ground up.”
“And to our supposed allies staying silent — your silence is louder than the clickbait haters,” Patel added.
Former FBI agent Kyle Seraphin began drawing attention to the flight logs last week, accusing Patel of “grifting off the American public” by utilizing U.S. tax dollars to pay for his private flight.
“We’re in the middle of a government shutdown where they’re not even gonna pay all of the employees that work for the agency that this guy heads, and this guy is jetting off to hang out with his girlfriend in Nashville on our dime?” Seraphin stated.
Additionally, FBI spokesperson Ben Williamson spoke out on the topic, calling criticism of Patel over the issue “disingenuous and dumb.”
Williamson pointed out that FBI directors are “required use travelers,” meaning that “they are mandated by Congress to travel on government plan even on personal travel. They’re actually barred from flying commercial. The reason for this is to maintain access to secure communications equipment in the event of an emergency.”
Williamson also revealed that “on personnel travel, the Director pays a reimbursement in advance – strictly following OMB rules,” while noting that Patel’s FBI has “taken steps to dramatically reduce costs of Director travel,” which “his predecessors did not do.”
“Kash himself has significantly limited personal travel – but he’s allowed to take personal time on occasion to see family, friends or his longtime girlfriend. He doesn’t do it often. He works far more full weekends than he does otherwise. And maybe most importantly – ask anyone who works for him, he’s on duty 24/7 regardless.” Williamson added.
Stay informed! Receive breaking news blasts directly to your inbox for free. Subscribe here. https://www.oann.com/alerts
What do YOU think? Click here to jump to the comments!Sponsored Content Below